April 22, 2017 – Step by Step

Today, stop running from regret, shame, guilt, loss and all other anguish that my drinking caused. I must come to terms and reconciliation with all of it. By taking each step with absolute honesty and the will of my Higher Power, I will look instead to the lessons to be learned from my actions that eventually pooled together to create the pain I may still carry. Regret and shame might be eased by the single strongest amend I can make: by not drinking today. I can release guilt by learning from the mistakes that bred it, and the sense of loss might be less if I can be grateful that I even had what I lost and accept that I might not have been ready to be responsible for what I had – and lost. Today, I work on easing any pain – not by confronting it but finding the comfort in it. But, in the end, if I deny or do not allow myself to feel and deal with the hurt, the good might not feel as good as it might otherwise. And our common journey continues. Step by step. – Chris M., 2017